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Siege of Middleton (1407)
'The 1407 Siege of Miltona '(also known as the 1407 Siege of Middleton for clarity) was the second of several conflicts between the inhabitants of Miltona and groups of Barbary Corsairs. Ali Karam led a force of some 500 corsairs against 50 fighting men of the Miltona Watch commanded by Pero Entenza and supported by some 200 townsmen. The battle is noted for the heroism and ascension to power of Lieutenant Philippe Cadron. Background In 1407 Middleton was the only town on Georgic Island, technically a part of Brunant but with little interaction. The Corsairs, due to their conflicts with the Venetian influenced Brunant, were looking for a base of operations close to Brunant. Georgic Island appealed for several reasons: It had a population (roughly 1000 in Middleton town and several hundred in the surrounding area) small enough to be easily controlled but large enough to support the pirates if neccesary; It was a small enough island to be defensible; and it was surrounded by cliffs leaving only two easy landing points (Miltona Harbour and Hindon beach) which could be easily defended. Brunant By 1407 Brunant was facing it's first signs of internal instability. Karam believed (correctly) that Brunanter military would be unwilling to send assistance to Middleton, preventing a repeat of 1388. It was thus that Karam set out towards Middleton in September 1407 with 1 galley, 3 fustas and several small ships. Battle A fisherman with keen eyes managed to give the Men of Middleton more several hours warning. Of the two merchant ships in the harbour, one was able to escape, promising to send for Brunantian aid. By the time Karam arrived in Middleton Harbour, Entenza and the 50 men of the watch stood ready to defend the city walls, supported by a growing number of poorly armed townsmen. The majority of the people in the surrounding area had found refuge within the walls, but could only watch as Karam and his men made quick work of the people and the single ship left outside the walls. Realising that he had lost the element of surprise, Karam set up camp outside the walls, not bothering to set up siege for the people of Middleton had nowhere to flee to. The next morning Karam called the first attack on Middleton. Middleton's defenders fought valiantly and held out for two days. Counter Attack After 2 days the town defenders were exhausted and, despite inflicting heavy losses on the corsairs, the odds of victory were growing increasingly slimmer. Entenza's lieutenant Philippe Cadron suggested a counter attack as a desperate measure, but Entenza chose to commit all his men to the defense of the town. Seeing sure defeat at the hands of the far superior corsair forces, Cadron went against orders and prepared for a counter attack. Unable to command men of the watch, Cadron was forced to recruit the from the supporting townsmen, ultimately recruiting 40 poorly equipped men. As the sun rose and the pirates prepared to attack, Cadron and his men left the city. At 9am Karam launched his attack and by 11am the corsairs had breached the wall. Two counters, the second led by Entenza, failed to dislodge them and Entenza was seriously injured. With their Captain injured, their Lieutenant nowhere to be found and a breached wall, the defenders of Middleton quickly fell back. It was at this moment that Cadron launched his counter attack. With the element of surprise, Cadron's men had quickly dispatched the 20 corsairs left to guard the ships. With their lack of training and equipment this was no small feat, and their success was mainly due to the ferocity of Cadron and Isabella Hortiz, a woman who, disguised as a man, had joined the force. They now set about lighting the ships on fire, scoring a particular victory on one of the Fusta's which was full of gunpowder. The explosion on the Fusta was enough to draw the attraction of the corsairs to their ships, which by now were blazing heavily. The twenty men who had been left guarding the camp attacked Cadron, but again Cadron's men dispatched them, Isabella being said to have killed 4 men herself, saving Cadron's life before succumbing to mortal wounds. Karam knew he could not afford to lose his ships, even a few of them, for that would leave him stranded and exposed to any Brunantian action that might eventually occur. With the fires as they were, he ordered 120 men to the ships to save them. Apparently watching the corsairs withdraw, Sergeant Alfons Cabra led a counter attack. Despite still facing an equal number of better trained and equipped pirates, the defenders of Middleton managed to drive them from the town, at great cost. Meanwhile the other pirates had managed to save all but one of the small ships, although one of the fustas was hardly water-worthy. Cadron and his surviving men had escaped into the wilderness and quickly returned to the town. Cadron was quickly hailed as a hero and when the injured Entenza, despite showing signs of recovery, died, apparently due to his wounds, Cadron became Captain of the Watch. Victory With just over 210 men left and having lost one ship and having another invalidated, the gains to be had from victory were quickly being outweighed by the costs. The following day Karam led the final assault on Middleton. The defenders, led by the courageous Cadron and Alfons, held their positions and after Karam was injured by Alfons, the pirates withdrew. Now lacking sufficient men to both guard the ships and assault the town with overwhelming force, Karam realised that any victory achieved here would be pyrrhic - he would be left with insufficient forces to establish a base of operations and defend and Brunanter attacks. He called an end to the attack and the next day the pirates sailed away to the cheers of the townspeople. Consequences Corsair Activity The defeat at Miltona would ensure that the Corsairs never established a stronghold in Brunant. Thus pirate activity in Brunant heavily decreased, decreasing even more so as the Venetians lost influence in Brunant. Following the battle, Ali Karam's prestige suffered hugely and he was relieved of much of his command. No commander took interest in Miltona until, in 1501 Kemal Reis sent a force to sack the town, rumoured to be as revenge for his grandfather Karam's loss (these rumours are unconfirmed as Reis's parentage remains unknown). From then on Corsair activity in the region increased and Miltona and then Middleton faced several attacks. Rise of Philippe Cadron Following his successful counterattack Philippe Cadron was viewed as a hero by the people of Miltona. In March 1408 he organised the elections of a Mayor, which he successfully won. However, Alfons convinced the men of the watch that the Mayor and Captain of the Watch should be seperate, and thus the Watch elected Alfons as their Captain. Cadron relinquished the role easily, although he remained a member of the watch. Soon after Alfons died, apparently of an infection to a wound he suffered while training with Cadron. The manner of his death has led many to suggest that Cadron deliberately killed both Entenza and Alfons in order to rise to power. Nevertheless, in June of 1408 Cadron was reelected as Captain of the watch, declaring Miltona independent of Brunant, sighting the lack of Brunantian aid in repulsing the Corsairs. Cadron would rule Miltona til his death in 1456. Historical Debate Two main historical debates exist about the events of the Siege: Whether or not Philippe Cadron saved Miltona, and if Pero Entenza died or was murdered. Philippe Cadron While Philippe Cadron is generally reputed to have saved the town, some historians suggest that he might have caused Mitlona to suffer more losses than she might otherwise have. They suggest that, with 30 fewer men on the walls than he thought he had, Entenza stood no chance of defending the town, whereas with his full compliment of men (just over 200 at that point) Entenza had a decent chance of repelling the 400 strong attacking force. Thus had Cadron remained in Mitlona, the walls might not have ever been breached. Critics point out that with 200 soldiers Entenza could easily have held the walls but with less than a quarter of his men properly trained or armed, he never would have held out. The losses support these critics: after two days Entenza had lost almost 50 men while Karam had lost 80. At this casualty rate Entenza's forces would reach a point where they were to small to defend the town long before Karam's forces could no longer launch an attack. Pero Entenza Following the repulsion of the Corsairs on the third day Pero Entenza was seriously injured but recovering. Upon Cadron's return he was immediately summoned to Entenza's quarters, where he was apparently releaved of command in favour of Sergeant Alfons, according to Entenza's assistant. Soon after Entenza took a turn for the worse and died that night, with Cadron assuming the title of Captain of the Watch. Entenza's assistant died in battle the next day. The suspicious circumstances surrounding the deaths of both Entenza and Alfons have led many to postulate that Cadron eliminated these men as political rivals. Those that argue against this hypothesis maintain that in the 50 years following Cadron was never afraid to openly remove opponents through peaceful or nonpeaceful actions, thus it was unlikely that he used subterfuge. Category:Battles Category:Middleton Category:Miltona Watch